Bec & Damo Of Leÿer

Meet The Maker

Torquay, VIC, Australia

Husband and wife, Rebecca and Damien Leijer, are the team behind timber furniture company Leÿer. The furniture range is designed and handmade by the couple in their workshop in Torquay on Victoria’s surf coast. Damo, a carpenter by trade with over 12 years experience, is a perfectionist when it comes to the construction of their timber goods. Damo made a few pieces for their own home which sparked interest with his friends who then commissioned their own pieces. The couple realised there was a gap in the market for locally designed and made, well-priced furniture – and so with Damo’s carpentry background and Rebecca as a creative marketeer, Leÿer was born.

Their designs have an emphasis on smooth lines, gentle curves and light timber which takes inspiration from their coastal surroundings. Leÿer’s selective range focuses on bedroom and living room options as well as working on one of a kind custom pieces with their clients.

Tell us about your design studio & workshop; where are you based, how long have you been there, and what is your specialty or signature style?

We are based in Torquay on Victoria’s Surf Coast. We moved here in November 2015 from Melbourne and launched Leÿer about six months later in May 2016. Damo grew up in Jan Juc and still has family here so it was an easy decision for us to move here once we had our two daughters Millie & Elle.

I guess we would be known for the simple curves of our furniture pieces, the colour of timber we use and hopefully our craftsmanship and quality! Each piece has a name and a story behind it, which adds to the authenticity.

Tell us about the pieces you produce; what are your main influences and how did you incorporate these into the design?

For our launch we decided to release a very small and considered range to the market. Our pieces all have similar qualities and when placed together match beautifully.  We are heavily influenced by our surroundings, being lucky enough to live 300m from Fishermans Beach and the beautiful Torquay coastline. It’s pretty hard not to wake up happy down here.

How do you find doing commissioned pieces for clients? How does the creative process differ from your set collection pieces?

Being such a young business, we have tried to steer away from a lot of commissioned work at this stage and focus more on our range. The reason being, we have taken considerable time to make a small collection of pieces that we have now mastered and reduced the production time as much as we can so that we can offer better prices to our customers. A lot of people think they would like custom furniture until they see the price. With our pieces, as they are all made to order, we can customise the sizes and heights to suit the individual homes.

What are your favourite aspects of being designers & makers? Are there many challenges?

We are fortunate to have met so many incredible people over the last few months since we started this business and have been given so many amazing opportunities. The interest we have received from industry people who we admire has blown us away, the awesome community of furniture makers are so supportive of each other. Our customers are also incredible and some are already good friends – who knew that would happen!

The challenges would really be time I guess. There is never enough time in the day to action all of the ideas we have, and of course if we had another couple of hands lying around to help us in the workshop that would be awesome.

What are your inspirations when creating new pieces? Do you have a favourite designer that influences you? 

Damo’s philosophy on design is that function has to be the primary objective. He puts a lot of effort into making a piece functional with a nice aesthetic – not only for practical use day to day, but also in the long term.  We don’t create pieces to be left on the side of the road, that’s for sure! We admire a lot of our fellow furniture makers but Bern Chandley has become Damo’s idol.

How do you see the furniture design industry right now, are there any shifts or changes you’ve noticed?

Living in such a transformed society in terms of how we interact with each other digitally, working from home and how we purchase goods and services online means that culturally there is a need for families to try and reconnect. We believe they are trying to simplify their lives and live more sustainably in their environment by de-cluttering. We believe this shift is happening right now and will be huge in the future as customers become increasingly more conscious shoppers.

How do you feel mass media and social platforms like Instagram are influencing the furniture industry, or even your own designs?

Any platform that helps to showcase the ‘behind the scenes’ work of a furniture maker is such a crucial aspect in helping educate customers in the value of handmade furniture. Traditionally you would have had to use paid media to communicate to your audience and you would most likely miss the real raw side of the business. Social Media is so good at showing this – the late nights, the cramped workshops, the faces behind the brand and the blood sweat and tears that go into each design – that’s pretty powerful!

From a customer’s perspective, that’s why they shop local and shop small, they can see who these people are and connect to them in a real way.

How important to you is the relationship between furniture and interactivity? Do you think our surroundings influence how we live, work, or play?

Its very important. We test out all of our furniture pieces in our own home first and we have two small kids who certainly get their hands all over everything. But it’s essential that furniture is functional and can be used day to day.

What materials do you enjoy working with and why? How does manufacturing locally affect your design process and final product? 

Primarily we use Victorian Ash (Alpine Ash). It’s a very common construction timber and is easily sourced – plus a lot of it grows in Victoria! It’s an underrated timber with a beautiful grain & colour. As we grow we’ll explore other timbers and materials but reclaimed timbers aren’t the aesthetic we’re looking for with the current furniture designs we have.

All of our pieces are made by hand here in Torquay. We don’t outsource anything which means that it’s a very laborious process but that’s what we believe produces the best results for our customers and we are proud of that.

Why is furniture important to our daily lives?  

We believe furniture can transform a house into a home and of course handmade furniture in particular. When someone walks into our home they always comment on some aspect of furniture that we have and we enjoy telling the story behind it. It helps tell you a little more about us and our personalities, and sets the scene for the visitor.

On a more practical level, we believe it is important to cater for more and more people in their 20’s and 30’s who are leading a transient lifestyle in terms of renting in city or coastal areas where they might not be able to afford a home.  For these people, moving may be an occurrence every 18 to 24 months. We want to give people beautiful handmade pieces that are attainable and can also be taken with them from place to place. Building a collection for a beautiful home (even if renting) makes making a home out of a rental property far more inviting.

Can we expect any new releases from Leÿer in 2017?

Well our biggest project this year is building our very own timber cabin in Torquay which we are designing and building ourselves. We will be documenting the journey on our website, and of course fill the house with Leÿer pieces!

This might take quite a bit of our spare time but we do have ideas for new bedhead designs and we are trying to perfect our very first dining table – the prototype is in our home at the moment and it’s looking pretty sweet.